Festival of the Sea

The hugely successful Celebrate Glendale events were brought to a close on Saturday 19th August with the Festival of the Sea, which included the famous Glendale Fishing competition and a seafood BBQ.

Conditions were worse than expected for the fishing competition with only the hardiest of anglers tempted to compete for the variety of trophies on offer. Ronnie Macleod offered hospitality and shelter in the historic and atmospheric Pier Store were the weigh-in took place. It was no surprise that the winners were two local father and son teams who split the prizes between shore and boat.

After the Awards presentation, the celebrations continued with a seafood BBQ. Fish from the competition were prepared by local resident and Three Chimneys Head Chef, Scott Davies. Tristan and Keith Jackson of Orbost Farm also helped to gut and fillet. The BBQ included hand dived Sconser Scallops, Local Langoustines, Oysters and a delicious Fish Pie. Vegetarian options accompanied the fish dishes with all the vegetables supplied by local Glendale producers, including Andy Stables from Croft Produce and Anthony Hovey from Skye Veg. A traditional herb Taboulleh with fennel, parsley & mint, a Kale Salad, Roasted Root Vegetables with a sweet honey dressing, Curried Potato & Leek Salad and Cucumber Raita were lovingly prepared by Angie Atherton, Hanna and Petri Pentikäinen and Gareth Craft earlier in the afternoon at the Red Roof Café.

Local Drumming Band MacLoud added a Samba party feel to the evening as the community came together to eat and celebrate at the recently purchased and community owned area of Meanish Pier. A bonfire built with donated wood, set ablaze against the magnificent backdrop of the Minch and Outer Hebrides created the perfect climax for such a successful community evening.

Speaking after the party, a delighted Roger Holden, a director of The Glendale Trust said, "it was a really tough day for fishing so well done to those who braved the conditions and took part. For the weather to be so poor but end up being perfect for a BBQ and bonfire was really amazing. We are so thrilled with the contributions from everyone who came along and helped us Celebrate Glendale as a place and its association with high quality food and produce. The support from so many of the community has been a huge boost to all those involved."

Florin, Dominic and Chris from Team Three Chimneys

Head Chef Scott Davies reflected on the night: “It was such a brilliant feeling to see so many of the local community come together and really enjoy the food. The scallops and the grilled mackerel with Cajun spices seemed to be everyone’s favourites. It is not often that members of Team Three Chimneys get to spend a sociable night off together…I really liked seeing this and I hope we can make that happen more often in the future.”